Become Santa to a lonely Saskatoon senior citizen

Lona Finney, owner of Saskatoon Home Support, organizes the Adopt-A-Senior program. The program aims to create a lasting friendship between a Saskatoon senior and a generous resident who is willing to put together and deliver a small gift and food hamper to the seniors home during the holidays.Greg Pender / The StarPhoenix

It only takes some spare time and a few extra dollars to bring joy to a lonely Saskatoon senior citizen this Christmas thanks to the Saskatoon Home Support’s Adopt-A-Senior program.

Lona Finney, owner of Saskatoon Home Support, has been delivering Christmas treats to seniors for the last decade but it was only last year she expanded Adopt-A-Senior, allowing anyone interested to put together a food hamper and small gift to hand deliver to a senior looking for some company this holiday season.

The end goal, she says, is to foster a lasting friendship between the adopter and the adoptee.

“It’s not about the monetary value of the basket, it’s more about sitting together and having a cup of tea,” Finney said, noting the seniors tended to get excited about things most people take for granted like Christmas oranges and pop.

“They really want so little. One person asked me ‘can we have some Coke?’ and I’m like ‘sure you can have Coke.’ It’s like I was just giving her the world with six mini cans of Coke.”

Already this year, Finney has seen a massive amount of people interested in getting involved, but she says they can always use more. The best way to get involved, or sign up a senior who could use a friend during the holidays, is to contact Finney directly through the Saskatoon Home Support website and set aside a few hours between Dec. 18-20 to deliver the Christmas treats.

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